Don't judge a book by its cover!
by Prince Zombie Frog
Summary: First impressions aren't always what they seem, so can Ahiru the schools new 'weirdo' and Fakir the 'dark delinquent' see the truth? FXA and MXR pairing, rated T just in case with some scenes of violence and things that will ruin the plot XP
1. Ch1 Empty seats

My second fanfiction! Although it's another Princess Tutu, this is an AU where they don't do ballet and go to a school in Japan (well anime Japan). Not really based on anything just something I wanted to try out. Since I can't think of anything uniform wise, I decided to use their original uniforms except girls have pleated grey skirts instead of puffy ones and the yellow...neck-jewel-things...will have the school logo instead ( a crown in front of a sword and two feathers crossing each other, one black one white- the background will be like the jewels in the anime)

I don't own Princess Tutu!

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><p><strong>Don't judge a book by it's cover!<strong>

Ch1~ Empty seats

"I am Arima, Ahiru. Please take care of me!"

The class stared at the girl standing in front of them for a moment in complete silence before someone muttered, "Her name is 'Duck'?"

As soon as the fist person had spoken up there was a wave of murmurs and whispers all over the room.

"Is that some sort of joke?"

"Maybe she said it wrong?"

"What's with her hair? Is it dyed?"

"I don't know but how does that lock stay up?"

"Are they sure they put her in the right school?"

"Who cares, as long as she doesn't sit near me"

"That's so mean, Genta-kun!"

"Do you want to sit next to her?"

"Well...I guess not..."

Ahiru kept her eyes to the floor as the class discussed her appearance, she knew she seemed strange to them- she thought she was strange herself! She had bright orange hair with a slight salmon tinge to it tied into a plat that reached the middle of her thigh, one lock of hair stood up from the top of her head at an unusual angle as if it had a life of it's own and her nose was dusted with childish freckles just under her large blue eyes, all of these things combined with her small height and unique name made her seem very odd to anyone who met her.

Today was her first day at Kin-Kan School, since she had to be transferred from her first school she was entering half way through the first week of the first semester. She had only moved in a few days back and hadn't got round to making any new friends since she had been so busy.

"Thank you Arima-san. Welcome to class 1-D2, If you would please take a seat, second to the back next to the window"

Ahiru nodded to her teacher before walking towards her seat, when she got their she noticed that both the seat by the window and the one behind it were empty. _~Maybe they're ill~_ she shrugged before taking her seat, trying to ignore the murmurs and curious gazes around her.

As she sat down her teacher cleared his throat as he adjusted his half-moon glasses, his golden eyes sparkling with confidence."All right that's enough everyone, since Arima-san and a few others have just joined us, I will introduce myself. My name is Nekozawa, Aoi, you may call me Nekozawa-sensei. I will be your home-room teacher for the time that you will be in this school, since there is a problem with staff and pupil numbers this is a class for both first and second years, not all of you will have lessons together- however!" suddenly he was surrounded by an ominous aura and his pale brown (almost grey) hair seemed to be standing on end. "In order to win the home-room cup you will have to work together! Anyone who fails to do this shall be bound by M-M-M-MARRAGE!"

The whole class went deadly silent as Nekozawa quickly fixed his hair into its original place, missing a few locks on each side making him resemble a large feline cleaning himself.

"classes will begin shortly" and with that he left the room...

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><p>"What a waste of time." the green-haired teen huffed turned away from the three boys, now lying on the floor.<p>

One of the boys lifted himself up to glare at him, yelling "What did you say! Hey! I'm not done with you yet!". The dark green eyes of the first boy didn't even blink as he caught the bat aimed to the side of his head in his hand, the boy behind him cursed in shock before dropping the bat to leave with his partners. Fakir threw the bat to his side, ignoring the aching pain in his shoulder, sighing in annoyance. It was only the first week of his second year and already people were picking fights with him to prove themselves, he looked down at his watch and decided to skip home-room, since it was almost over anyway, and go straight to his next class with Mytho.

Fakir was tall compared to some in his year, his long dark hair and glaring eyes seemed to add to his threatening aura without him having to try. Because of this and his habit of skipping class whenever he liked, most people thought him to be a delinquent, and so he often found himself attacked by others- whether from his school or not-, this had only fuelled the rumours about him more.

Of course he didn't do much to correct these rumours and had refused Mythos' offer to do so, they made the pupils of the school give him space and avoided any unnecessary conversation making it easier for him to concentrate on more important things, all he had to do was stand beside Mytho and none of Mythos' jealous peers would make a move, it also made research and study easy since he could use the library in silence without trouble, and so he decided a few fights were a reasonable price for privacy and his cousins' well being.

Fakir flinched as he moved his injured shoulder. _~If Mytho notices this he'll get worried...baka~_

Deciding to skip lessons for the morning, he made his way to the back of the school with his school bag slung over his shoulder...

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><p>A swan-haired boy stood in front of his class room, his golden eyes searching for his freind down each hall way only to find countless other students and admirers.<p>

"Ōji?" the teen smiled lightly as he turned to the raven-haired girl beside him, her ruby eyes staring up at him in worry.

"Rue, please call me Mytho" he looked down at her with gentle eyes as she blushed

"O-ok, Ōj- I mean Mytho" she smiled before returning to her worried expression, "Is something troubling you?"

Mytho sighed and closed his eyes as he nodded, not many could read him like Rue and he knew it was impossible to lie to her but that was one of the reasons he loved her since he was still unsure of his emotions. Ever since his and Fakirs' parents had died, Mytho had gone into a state of shock that had muted his emotions, Fakir had often tried to snap some sense into him but had also suffered terribly from their loss, over the years Fakir had made himself Mythos' protector while he fought to regain some of the feelings that had been shut away inside of him. It had not been long until he met Rue and she soon managed to sooth some of his worries and bring out some of his old self, this had earned her some of Fakirs acceptance but he still refused to believe she was the ideal partner for him, the two tended to argue over him but they got along well enough and Mytho was grateful for that.

"Fakir hasn't arrived yet and I'm worried for him"

Rue's face immediately changed from one of worry to that of annoyance at the mention of her boyfriends' 'guard dog'. "Your cousin makes so much fuss about keeping you out of trouble but causes you trouble by being so stubborn, you shouldn't worry about him that much, he always turns up eventually"

"He has good intentions Rue and I know I shouldn't worry but I can't help it...I'm the only family he has and yet he refuses to accept my assistance, I'm afraid he's taking too much on..." he sighed again before reaching for her hand, "but your right, he'll arrive eventually"

The beautiful second year nodded as he lead her back into class...

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><p>Ok that was short but this was just a bit of a prologue to 'set the scene' really.<p>

Please tell me what you think so far, the next update may be a while since I'm still stuck on 'Sorcerer's Heart' at the moment.


	2. Ch2 First Impressions

_**Here's the next chapter! I have put some translations and honorfics at the bottom- please read this!- it helps to understand the text and I enjoy using Japanese words!**_

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><p><span>Don't judge a book by its cover!<span>

Ch 2- First Impressions

_~English! Why did my first lesson have to be English!~_ Ahiru cried out in her mind as Nekozawa-sensei wrote two sentences on the board that looked more like a whole paragraph! As he moved away from the board she read every word as quickly as possible...and understood none of it.

"Arima-san, would you please translate the first part for us"

Nekozawa stared intently at Ahiru, like a cat daring a mouse to jump on the mouse trap; it seemed that it was more of an order than a request. The nervous first year gulped as she read the sentence -

**'Behind every great man there's a great woman!'**

She stood up uncertainly before speaking "has which major woman behind the great man for any?"

Her face screwed up in puzzlement for a moment as she processed what she just said, not noticing the shocked look from her teacher. The sentence didn't sound right to her but she was sure that she had read it correctly.

"Eto...Neko-sensei, that sentence makes no sense. I think...Neko-sensei?"

Ahiru looked round at the shocked faces of her class before turning back to her teacher, his hair was once again standing on end while his golden eyes were wide and the pupils small, reminding her of her of a cat caught in head lights _~Actually his name fi__ts him perfectly! Like me~ _This thought made her smile, which made Neko_**zawa-**_sensei bristle up even more.

"Are you trying to mock me Arima-san? Do I look like a cat to you? Or are you trying to catch my attention!"

"Qua-!-I mean-No sensei! Sumimasen!" Ahiru yelped quickly sitting back down in her seat as students around her began to snicker quietly.

"Did she just say 'quack'?"

"'Neko'-sensei? Is duck-girl serious?"

"May be everyone's named after animals where she's from- maybe she has a sister called Arikuimi-san"

"An anteater?"

A couple of boys started laughing at the thought of such a thing, soon stopping when they noticed their 'ever so happy' teacher sending them a killer glare before fixing his hair and turning back to Ahiru.

"Since you are new Arima-san I will give you some leniency but you will remain after school and clean the drama rooms as punishment for interrupting my class" he calmly stated before returning to the board.

"Yes, Neko-sensei" she sighed jumping when her teacher made a 'mraw' noise as he slammed his head into the board before sliding to the floor.

"She...still got it wrong" he mumbled to himself in defeat before standing up and straitening himself out.

The classes went by with quiet snickers and murmurs about the new duck-girl and Nekozawa-senseis' new name, and before long it was almost lunch. All the first year students in her class stared at Ahiru as she waved out of the window at a huge flock of birds sitting on the tree and windowsill beside her, even the teacher was shocked at this but decided to leave it for another day- that was until someone in the room next door opened a window...

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><p>Rue smiled as Mytho passed her his notes before the teacher could notice, silently thanking him as she accepted them. She had been absent on the second day of the semester due to one of her fathers' grand openings, yet again trying to match her up with the heir of some wealthy family, leaving her unprepared for this particular essay. It was about the story of 'The Prince and the Raven' by Drosselmeyer and a spin-off story called 'Princess Swan' who's writer was unknown, as she read Mythos notes she noticed how each character had their own tragic fates to overcome and that the while 'Price Siegfried' had been the main character of both tales the unknown author had focussed on Odette, or 'Princess Swan', who had only appeared briefly in the first book. But out of all the characters she found herself more attached to Clare who, despite being raised by the loveless raven, had fallen hopelessly in love with the prince to the point where she was afraid to lose him.<p>

Rue glanced at Mytho who was staring out of the window at a small bird, fluttering it's wings as it looked up at him from the windowsill with hopeful eyes. Mytho being Mytho, he couldn't help but comply with the birds wish.

"Sensei, can I open the window?"

Their teacher smiled warmly as he nodded "Of course Shiro-san"

Mytho stood up and slid the window open. That was when Rue noticed the other birds.

Almost immediately the white-haired boy was engulfed by a whole flock of birds as they sped into the classroom, Rue quickly ducked down to avoid them while the rest of the class started yelling and running about (including the teacher). One of the boys decided that running was the best option and bolted out the door only to be followed by the flying mob.

When the storm of feathers had left Rue stood up and looked at Mytho, quickly placing her hand over her mouth to stop her laughter escaping. There was Mytho, standing in the same position as before, with several different feathers sticking out of his messed up white locks and his uniform in a similar state as his hair. If that wasn't enough, Mytho was staring into space with a look of complete shock and confusion; she just couldn't stop herself from laughing.

At Rue's laughter Mytho finally came to his senses and turned to look at his girlfriend, even though he felt thoroughly embarrassed he had to smile. She was so cute when she laughed from the heart and it didn't happen too often so he was happy to see it. His thoughts of Rue where interrupted briefly when he noticed that the birds were no longer in the room. _~I wonder where they went...~..._

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><p>Suddenly all the various birds swooped into the building, banging and yelling could be heard from the classroom next-door until the door to their own class was slammed open by a panicked student followed by a mass of feathers.<p>

When the flurry of feathers finally calmed down Ahiru was sitting on the floor surrounded by birds, some of them perched on her head and shoulders, her head spinning as she and the rest of the class tried to unravel this weird mystery. Ahiru shook off her dizziness looking at all the birds with a wide smile.

"I guess you guys are hungry, ne?"

Everyone else in the room was giving Ahiru strange looks before the teacher walked up to her, not looking pleased at all.

"Arima-san, what is the meaning of this?" she asked crossing her arms as she stared down at the girl. Said girl looked up at her sheepishly as she stood up and opened the window next to her, letting the birds fly out of the building, before speaking "Gomen! May I be excused?"

Without waiting for a reply she gave a quick bow and rushed out of the classroom shouting-

"Hasshin!"

The whole room was silent but everyone's thoughts were clear to see _~Weird~_

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><p>"Damn another dead-end!" Fakir growled as he closed the file in his hand <em>~Yaro...is there no way I can catch him?<em> he growled once more as he flung the file down on the floor before looking at his watch. It was already the start of lunch.

Sighing, the teen leaned back on the wall to look up at a group of birds as they swooped through the air, his gaze softened slightly at their display, wondering what it must be like to be able to live without burdens and regrets before brushing off the thought entirely. Some things just weren't that easy...

BANG!

Fakir quickly stood up and prepared himself as someone rushed through the door beside him and... Completely ignored him?

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><p>Ahiru burst through the back door of the school; tightly holding on to the large bag of bird seed she was holding as she stumbled through, only just keeping her balance. When she caught her breath once again she grabbed her bag and began to tug at the large feeding tray inside, completely unaware of the older boys presence as she wriggled the tray out with a smile.<p>

"There! Now for the seeds"

"Oi"

"Qua-!"

The red-head quickly let go of the tray and seeds, letting them scatter over the ground, to cover up her mouth before turning to find a very dark, very annoyed looking boy standing right there, glaring at her with piercing green eyes with one eyebrow raised at her quacking.

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><p>Fakir looked down at the girl before him. ~<em>Did she just quack? ~<em> He wouldn't be surprised if she had, the way she moved and flailed about resembled a duck in his mind. His eyebrow rose higher when he noticed the large amount of bird seed she had been carrying, for a moment he even wondered if _she _was going to eat it but soon shook off the thought.

The new girl started to wave her hands in front of her face as she spoke. "I-I'm so sorry, am I disturbing you I didn't mean-"

Before she could continue Fakir decided to interrupt. "Why are you here?" he sighed in frustration as he glared down at the girl.

The girl looked up at him with a confused look before looking down at the seeds and smiling up at him.

"Feeding my friends, they flew into the classroom since I was late so I thought I'd give them extra"

Ok- not what he had expected. Not only had his glare gone straight over her head but she had answered with a load of nonsense. Now that he thought about it he didn't recognise her, so maybe the reason she wasn't intimidated was because she was new and had yet to hear the rumours.

Fakir closed his eyes trying to gather his patience; he wasn't in the best of moods and didn't need this idiot intruding in the one place he could get away from others.

"Whatever, just leave. You're a bother" Fakir made his way back to his seat and sat back down, pulling out a small book from his pocket and opening it at the first page

"What's your problem? I just wanted to feed the birds not to 'bother' you and I apologised for that! So there's no need to be such a jerk about it" Ahiru shouted back to him.

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><p>Ahiru couldn't understand it- sure she interrupted him, but still- she had apologised for her actions and he brushed her off like she was some sort of useless pest!<p>

The green-haired teen turned the page he was on and continued to ignore the girl in front of him, Ahiru jumped to her feet clenching her fist as she spoke.

"Are you like this to everyone?-Are you even listening?"

When he continued to read his book the red-head pouted, kicking at a stone in frustration as she yelled- "Stop ignoring me you jerk!"

That's when she realised that her shoelace was undone…

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><p>Fakir resisted the urge to glare at her again and turned another page of his book. <em>~Why can't she just take the hint and leave?~<em> When she shouted Fakir looked up to retort- only to have a small shoe slam into his face…

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><p>The air was still, and for a moment all Ahiru could do was stare at Fakir as the shoe slid off his face and hit the ground with a soft 'thump'. The shade of the trees and his dark hair prevented her from seeing his expression but even so the tension in his body was obvious, she could feel the heated glare being sent her way without seeing, it brought a dread with it that made her weak in the knees.<p>

Slowly, the green-haired boy reached down to the shoe and stood up, gradually making his way toward Ahiru as he kept his face hidden from view. As he got closer Ahirus eyes began to drift towards her uncovered foot, trying to avoid his gaze. All too soon he was standing in front of the red-head, towering above her by about twenty centimetres, his left hand holding up her shoe as if it were a weapon. They both stood in silence, not moving a muscle as they waited for the other to speak; Fakir was the first to make a move.

"You…take your stupid shoe and leave, you're bothering me baka" he growled dangerously as his glaring eyes became visible along with the dirt on his cheek left from Ahiru's flying shoe.

Ahiru looked up at his words and shakily took the shoe, her fright making her unusually speechless, she then quickly spun round and bolted around the corner. After she had reached the back of the sport courts her knees collapsed from under her. _~I-I really annoyed him…his eyes were so scary, I thought he might hit me…~_

Ahiru took a few breaths before straightening up and looking about, only to realise she had left her bag and seeds with…

The duck-like girl was puzzled for a moment _~Who was he anyway?...~_

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><p>Fakir watched the terrified girl flee around the corner and sighed, rubbing a hand over his eyes.<p>

_~Maybe that was a bit much…~_ he dropped his hand, deciding to let it go. _~At least she'll leave me alone now. That baka almost poked my eye out with that damn pointed shoe…~_. In all honesty he wasn't that mad at her, but after hitting another dead-end in his research, being attacked by three guys and lack of proper sleep her presence and actions had made him snap.

The boy heard a chirping to his side and looked over; several small birds had landed by the scattered seeds and started feasting generously around the odd girls bag. Fakir's expression was unreadable as he stared down at the bag.

_~…baka~_

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><p><em><strong>If you already understand Japanese words and phrases than skip this and have a look at honorfics, anyone who notices something wrong please tell me!<strong>_

_**Any way thanks for reading and please review! (I like to know if my stories are any good)**_

_**I forgot to translate some of the words in the last chapter!**_

_**I went on a few websites to find this stuff please correct me if I'm wrong:**_

_**Arikui- Anteater mi- beauty**_

_**Baka- idiot/moron**_

_**Ōji- Prince**_

_**Shiro- white**_

_**Neko- cat**_

_**sensei- teacher**_

_**and for future reference just in case I use these:**_

_**Eto – 'err', 'uhh'**_

_**Abayo- good bye**_

_**Aho- dumb ass**_

_**Ano..- uhh... or well...**_

_**Hai – I'm paying attention (not yes apparently)**_

_**Hasshin!- Lunch!**_

_**Nyanko- kitty cat ^w^**_

_**Betsu ni – nothing/ nothing really**_

_**Ii yo- it's OK, don't worry about it**_

_**Iku ze- lets go!**_

_**Kon'aro!- you b**tard! (or Yaro - b**tard)**_

_**Kora – hey! In a rough tone**_

_**Kuso- sh*t (or Che)**_

_**Mata ne- see you later**_

_**Nan de?- why?**_

_**Ne?- right?**_

_**Ohayo- good morning**_

_**Onigiri- Just in case you didn't know, this is what you call the little rice cakes that you see kids eating in most anime. They look like little white turnovers and are made of rice and maybe a little stuffing inside, usually pickled plum. Sometimes they have a little piece of seaweed on the outside.**_

_**Puri Puri - This is used to describe somebody's mood that seems to be grouchy or moody.**_

_**So ka- I see/ really?**_

_**Sumimasen- I'm sorry (Gomen/Gomenasai)**_

_**Urusai- shut up (noisy/ damn, that's annoying)**_

_**Yada- no/no way**_

_**Here's some info on Japanese honorifics- sorry if some are wrong!**_

_**Friends call each other by first names with 'kun' for boys or 'chan' for girls at the end but really close friends can call each other by just their first name and 'chan' can be used at the end of a nickname for both boys and girls**_

_**Pupils who aren't friends can call each other by second name with 'san' but juniors call seniors by their last name with 'san' or 'sama' or 'senpai' depending on the relationship**_

_**Teachers are called by their last name and 'sensei'**_

_**Family-**_

_**Otō-san is father**_

_**Okaa-san is mother or Kaa-san by their husband**_

_**Oji-san is uncle**_

_**Oba-san is auntie**_

_**Ojii-san is grandpa**_

_**Obaa-san is grandma**_

_**Onii-san is big brother**_

_**Onee-san is big sister**_


	3. Ch3 We meet again

**Don't judge a book by its cover!**

Ch 3- We meet again!

The small crowds of students shuffled hurriedly to each side of the hallway as the dark-haired teen made his way past them, ignoring the hushed voices and wary glances sent his in his direction.

"Did you see that mark on his face?"

"Yeah, I don't think I've ever seen him with so much as a graze before!"

"Who do you think did it?"

"Maybe he got into a huge fight and lost!"

"Baka, there's no way that could happen- this is Kurai-sempai!"

"What's with the extra bag though?..."

Fakirs' eyebrow twitched in annoyance but he refused to acknowledge the people around. But they did have a point, so far he had won every fight he had since his first year without any visible injury, it was hard to believe that the bruising area on his face had been caused by some annoying girl with a loose shoe. He had been tempted to leave her bag outside, it had been her fault for leaving it in the first place, but he realised that she was probably too stupid to think of that or too scared, either way he didn't want her returning for her bag just to cause him more bother. So he decided to dump it at in the locker hall before joining Mytho and his troublesome girlfriend...

_~ What he sees in that __**crow**__ I'll never know...at least she's not that duck-girl...~_

Fakirs' eyebrow twitched as he was reminded of the cause for the pain in his cheek.

He muttered so quietly that his irritation was hardly noticeable.

"Damn girl."...

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><p>"Where is it? Where is it?"<p>

Birds scattered into the air to avoid the small panicking red-head as she ran around in search for her missing bag. She had arrived here some time ago after realising that she had left it when she had ran away from...from that tall dark delinquent guy. Ahiru pouted as she remembered him, even if he had scared her with that harsh glare she couldn't help but feel that he was better described as a 'jerk' than a 'threat'.

The duck-like girl looked around her, her large blue orbs scanning the area with no sign of her bag or the intimidating boy._ ~Did he leave after telling me to? Why did he make such a big deal about it just to leave!~_ Ahiru stomped her foot in frustration, glaring at the spot where he had previously sat.

Suddenly a scary thought came into her head.

_~ Does he have my bag?~_

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><p>"Mytho, can't we eat in the lunch hall? Or the <em>front<em> of the school building?"

"Fakir told me to stay out back at lunch this year-"

"If he's so bothered why doesn't he go to you? I was looking forward to eating in the sun before winter..."

The pair walked along the corridors towards the back of the building as they talked, the golden-eyed young boy looking apologetically at the red-eyed girl beside him who had lifted her chin as she made her complaint, living up to her title as Kin-Kans' 'Red Lady'- or as Fakir would say 'Snobby Crow'.

"I'm sorry Rue, but I really want to see if he's ok and you know what he's like..." Mytho said gently with an awkward smile.

Rue opened her eyes to give him a side-glance, quickly closing them again to stop her from blushing, deciding instead to speak a little louder to cover up her fluttering heart.

"You shouldn't let him control you like that. He's not your owner"

Mytho almost faltered in his steps, his smile became more awkward as he thought- _~ But you're doing the same thing Rue...~. _He sighed lightly, once again accepting that although Fakir and Rue were similar in some ways, they would never get along happily- happily being the main focus. He smiled sweetly, taking Rues hand in his own with a soft squeeze.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind, Ӧjo"

Mytho chuckled when Rue was unable to hide the blush spreading over her cheeks.

When they reached their destination Mytho opened the door for Rue to go through, when she did not take his offer he looked to her face, it took him a moment or two to connect her expression with 'confusion'. Realising this he looked over to where she was directing her gaze….

* * *

><p>Fakir scanned the room, not paying attention to any of the uncomfortable students inside.<p>

~_Where is Mytho? I thought I told him to stop running off without telling me…baka_~ The dark-haired boy turned sharply to face one of the girls closest to him making her flinch slightly. "Where is Mytho?" he snapped, not bothering to hide his rising temper.

"I-I don't know, I-" He didn't bother to listen to the rest. Fakir quickly turned and made his way out of the class room, heading back to his usual spot, ~_Can this day be any more annoying?~…._

* * *

><p>Ahiru never noticed the two curious stares as she paced back and forth, grumbling to herself as a group of small birds hopped around her to avoid her clumsy steps while they ate the remaining bird seed.<p>

"-What was his problem anyway? He had obviously been skipping class- definitely a dangerous person. Maybe he'll dump it in a pond or something; stupid jerk didn't even listen to my apolo-"

At that moment the pouting girl looked up to see the two second years staring at her from the doorway. Her words died away as she stared back at the couple, one was a beautiful girl a little taller than Ahiru with softly curled raven hair and eyes that burned with a stunning ruby colour, her delicate features and poise reminded her of an actress on the red carpet. The other arrival was a tall boy who could be described more as 'pretty' than handsome, his feathery white locks framed his girlish features above his golden eyes, to Ahiru he looked just like a prince from a fairy tale brought to life. _~They're like a royal couple...~_

A small blush appeared on her cheeks making her more aware of the fact that none of them had yet said anything at this point. She laughed awkwardly as she spoke.

"E-Eto…O-ohayo?" [note: It's afternoon now]

_~What are you saying baka!~_ Her mind screamed as she continued to smile awkwardly at the two seniors….

Rue stared at the strange girl before her. She had been expecting, although not happily, to see Fakir sitting in his usual spot with yet another book in his hand but instead had found a flustered junior girl marching back and forth with a number of birds around her. Fair to say she was very confused.

The blue-eyed girl noticed them and was silent for a moment as if she had been caught doing something wrong. None spoke and she could see a faint blush appearing on the girls' cheeks just before she spoke.

"E-Eto…O-ohayo?

Rue and Mytho glanced at each other, silently transmitting the same thought. _~'Ohayo'? who is she?~_ The raven haired girl looked back at the girl as her partner spoke.

"I'm sorry but we were expecting to meet our friend here-" Mytho paused for a moment when he noticed Rues irritated look; she wasn't pleased at having Fakir referred to as a_ friend_.

"-Well, _my _friend- have you seen him…?"

Mytho looked towards Rue for help and she spoke up for the first time.

"Who are you, are you new here?" she asked as nicely as possible but still sounding slightly commanding.

The red-eyed teen couldn't help but feel the need to put her guard whenever another girl was near her boyfriend, and after noticing the small blush on the younger girls' cheeks it was hard not to feel slightly possessive of her lover. [Understatement of the year]

Rue watched carefully as the unusual person replied…

* * *

><p>"A-Ano, I'm first-year Arima Ahiru from class 1-2D. Nice to meet you, sempias!" The duck-girl gave a quick bow before clearing her head and remembering what the first had said.<p>

"Ah! Are you friends with that person?"

Ahiru found it hard to believe that this would be the case but he had to be the one they were looking for right? Well even someone like that could have friends.

She shifted her gaze to were the teen had previously sat, remembering how the green in his glaring eyes had seemed to be replicated by the shimmers in his hair, along with his tanned skin he gave the wild yet calm impression of the forest, although his words and actions resembled had been less then calm.

"Did you see him?" The boy repeated.

Ahiru blushed lightly as she nodded, "Yes but he...left"

He smiled at her sweetly before putting a hand on his partners shoulder. "This is my girlfriend, Kuroha Rue. Don't let her words scare you though she's really very sweet-" Rue flushed, trying to avoid his gaze as he continued, "and I'm Shiro Mytho, I'm guessing you've already met my friend?" he smiled in amusement but his eyes seemed to cloud over for a moment before he quickly moved his golden orbs to watch the birds as they ate.

_~Did he say Crow? Why does he look so sad all of a sudden__?__! __Maybe I did something wrong? Why are people so confusing in this place?~_ Ahiru couldn't stop each question from flying around her skull as Mytho spoke. She was beginning to feel more and more distressed as the day progressed, she had hoped to find her place in this school since things at home had...not worked out, but it seemed that she was already messing up any chance of that happening.

"Were you feeding the birds?" The younger girl snapped her attention to Rue, the ruby eyed senior had taken a few steps forward to look at the small crowd of feathery creatures, subtly squeezing Mythos hand to gain his attention.

"Oh! These are my friends!" Ahiru smiled widely and giggled, "They got a bit hungry since I forgot to feed them this morning and ended up flying into the class room! Ah- Shizuka- sensei was angry! But I ran out..." she gulped nervously only to look up as the couple chuckled lightly. She stared at them in confusion before Mytho noticed her and decided to explain.

"I was the one who opened the window, I had no idea that they were after you!" he grinned as the duck-like-girl blushed.

Rue's eyes softened before murmuring loud enough for Ahiru to hear, "You're so sweet, if a little unusual"

Ahiru's blush faded slightly but lingered at her words. No one had ever said something like _that_ before (well Lilie had called her sweet but Ahiru had never considered it a compliment when it was accompanied by nuggie-like pat on the head) and it threw her off alliance a little to hear it from such a graceful person such as Rue...

* * *

><p>Fakir slowed as he made it to his usual spot, noticing the door was wide open. The dark-haired boy shrugged it off, figuring that Mytho must have left it open when he arrived but stopped short of walking out when he heard familiar voices.<p>

"Were you feeding the birds?"

"Oh! These are my friends!" Fakirs eyes widened slightly as he recognised the girl from earlier. _~She came back? Why did that baka come back after taking off like that?~_ Imediately he looked down at the small bag hanging next to his in his grasp, a small duck key-ring poking out of one of the pockets.

"They got a bit hungry since I forgot to feed them this morning and ended up flying into the class room! Ah- Shizuka-sensei was angry! But I ran out..."

Fakir narrowed his eyes in confusion, not only at the girls weird story but at the sound of Mytho chuckling along with his troublesome girlfriend, how long had it been since he had heard that? When was the last time Mytho had shown a sense of humour? _~Is that crow really healing him or...~_ He leaned over to view Mythos grin and Rues amused look as they stood in front of the red-head from earlier, who blinking in confusion.

_~Or was it that duck-girl?~ _He stared at his friend as they spoke to the girl, the feeling of uselessness washing over him _~Mytho...__how can I hope to catch him if I can't even protect you?~_ he quickly dismissed his thoughts and stepped out of the door, catching his cousins attention.

The swan-haired boy perked when he spotted him, "Fakir! We were looking for you."

Rue stiffened slightly, giving Fakir a snooty look as the younger girl turned to look at the new arrival and froze in shock. There was a moment of silence as the two stared at each other, Ahiru in panicked confusion and Fakir in annoyance, before Mytho noticed, "Do you know each other?"

The girl spun to face him before glancing back at Fakir. He gritted his teeth before replying, "This baka, decided to interrupt my research before throwing a shoe in my face" he growled sending the girl a glare as he mentioned the incident.

Before any of the others could speak the 'baka' in question shot a look at him before clenching her fists and snapping at him. "I said sorry but you were being a jerk! How did I know that my shoe would come off like that- you didn't have to get all moody over it! And were's my-" her gaze fell to the extra bag in his possession, "That's my bag!"

The two bystsndards blinked in wonder as the two carried on bickering, not seeming to care about their audience or the fact that neither seemed to really be listening to what one another was saying.

"Iritating baka..."

"I'm not a baka, you're just a jerk!"

"Urusai, you're giving me a head ache."

"Meany!"

"Klutz."

"Jerk!"

"Can't you even think of a better insult?"

"Says you! Baka!"

"Aho-"

"HEY!"

The two stopped and looked at Mytho and Rue before finally giving in with small of 'jerk' from Ahiru. Mytho sighed in relief and Rue was still brooding slightly over being ignored.

"I thought they'd never stop" Mytho groaned quietly while the other pair refused to look at each other.

Fakir gave the weird girl one last glance before speaking to Mytho.

"C'mon Mytho, let's get some lunch before I get a migraine" after a moment he tossed the girls bag in to unsuspecting arms, turning as she struggled with it, "here, don't bother others with your junk baka, it might get stolen" he called while he walked off with Mytho and Rue.

"U-urusai Jerk!"

He almost had the urge to smirk at her outburst.

Of course he scowled instead...

* * *

><p>Ahiru glared at the back of the boys dark green head of hair as he and the other two walked away before looking down at her bag, finally processing what he had said.<p>

"Was he...looking after my bag?" she must aloud.

Opening the bag slightly she noticed the remaining condense of the seed bag she had earlier along with her tray slipped in.

She looked over at the birds in wonder.

"...Fakir...huh..."

...

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><p><strong>To be continued~<strong>

**Hope you liked the chapter! To anyone who is wondering Rues name is also from the manga- it fits so I used it- Fakir and Ahiru are still having a go at each other but Ahirus starting to use her noggin a bit and she's confusing him, so we'll see what happens. Well you'll see- I already know XD**

_For anyone who reads 'Sorcerers Heart' I apologise but I've hit a huge writers block on that chapter and had to start re-writing some bits so it will be a while yet. : (_

_**Hope you liked this chapter and please review! I do love comments!**_


	4. Ch4 Whispers

**I am so sorry! This should have been out months ago! I have lot's of reasons why it's not but I'll just shut up and post the chapter T^T**

Don't judge a book by its cover!

Ch4-Whispers of things to come and things that have been

Ahiru jumped at the sound of the school bell, having lost track of time she felt shocked at how quickly her first day had gone. After her time with Mytho, Rue and Fakir she had remained behind the school with her feathered friends as she ate lunch, it was lonely and made her crave for Pique and Lillies' company- even if they would tease her about her day. The next few classes had not gone well either, her first attempt at chemistry had almost dyed the teachers hair bright green and she wasn't looking forward to her next history class after the glare she had received for quacking loudly in the middle of class (she _had_ been hit with a paper aeroplane though) from the formidable Sohma- sensei.

Quickly gathering her history book and other bits and pieces, the human duckling shuffled speedily out of the door and down the hall, hoping to find the drama department before Neko-sensei **[Neko****_zawa_****-sensei! ]** decided to marry her off for being late. The halls were full of chattering students preparing to leave in groups of friends, a few girls giggling as another smaller girl blushed whilst looking down the hall at the gathering football team, Ahiru kept her smile to herself and walked on quickly glancing at the boys to see one of them staring at the blushing girl in wonder, smiling brightly at the look on his face before blushing ferociously when he noticed her and sprinting off with a yelp of surprise. She did not see the confused boy watch her leave nor the glares she received from the group of girls, the smaller girl looking slightly worried at the small exchange...

* * *

><p>"Fakir."<p>

Fakir finished packing his school bag before looking over his shoulder where his cousin was giving him an unsure stare; this was very unusual for Mytho since he met Rue. "Nani?"

For a moment the younger boy said nothing, looking around the room as he seemed to gather his thoughts, when he finally seemed satisfied he sighed and leaned back on his desk with his arms folded and head down. "That girl earlier, I can't shake this feeling that I've seen her somewhere before..."

Surprised, the taller teen turned to face his cousin with a mild questioning look. "You've met that brat before?"

"Yes-No. I mean...I don't know." Mytho sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair, "Doesn't she look familiar to you? I could have sworn that..."

As he trailed off Fakir looked back on his meeting with the girl, she had long orange hair and large blue eyes that were more emotive and naïve than what he'd expect to see from someone her age, she was skinny with freckled dotted across her nose like a child too.

Shaking his head Fakir decided to speak up, "Ii yo, let's get back before Karon starts to worry too much"

"Hai" Mytho nodded and made his way to the door where Rue was waiting for him patiently, Fakir watched quietly as he thought about their short conversation, even after dismissing the possibility of having met the strange duck-girl he couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong about all this. Mytho rarely asked about the past, learning that he recovered better when he kept himself in the present, it had always been Fakir that was the one who was looking back constantly trying to work out what had happened all those years ago, why it happened and how he could catch the one who caused it...or more how he could prove that it was _that_ man who caused it, so why was his cousin suddenly interested in looking back now? Surely Fakir would remember if that girl had something to do with them?

For the umth time that day he shrugged off such thoughts, he didn't even know the kids name and there was no way he could forget something that annoying, Mytho might have seen her in town when on a date with Rue for all he knew. But even then the strange feeling still lingered in the back of his mind...

* * *

><p>Cleaning wasn't so bad, it gave her time to think while exercising- not to mention it was one of the few things she could do to a adequate level, but Ahiru found that it was much more lonely than she previously remembered. Sighing she looked out of the large windows of the drama studio, after only just managing to avoid Neko-senseis' <strong>[Nekoza-nevermind...] <strong>anger she had been left to clean up on her own while he watched over the media club (which he seemed a bit too passionate about ) on the next floor.

Blue eyes scanned the skies as the few remaining pupils left the area without a single glance her way, not that she had been expecting any different. Her thoughts drifted to her first day; being introduced in class, Neko-sensei **[...]**, that incident with Fakir, meeting Mytho and Rue...it had been a very tiring day.

_~Fakir...~_ Ahiru remembered the tall boy as he threw her bag back to her, finding both her feeding tray and seeds neatly placed inside, ~_should I thank him? He did give my bag back so maybe he's not so bad...~_ the look in his eyes before she ran from him echoed in her mind making her shiver.

_~But he looked so scary, like he was going to kill me! And he was a complete jerk, why should I thank him?!~_ The first year huffed out loud, glaring at the image of her 'enemy'. Calming down she looked over the school grounds, ~_Although he seemed to be friends with that nice 'royal couple', maybe he's just shy~_ The duckling girl found herself imaging the dark-green-haired teen stuttering as he introduced himself to a class...~_Y-yada, that's not it.~_

Groaning in defeat Ahiru decided she'd try and find him tomorrow to thank him but after that she'd have nothing to do with the jerk. An odd noise caught her attention before she noticed the group outside not too far away from the studio, five laughing boys seemed to be crowded around somebody on the ground that she couldn't see and there was no teacher nearby.

Without a thought she was running out of the drama department and out into the gardens, just her bag clasped in her hand as she ran towards the group, she could see them clearer now, there was a girl with short mint hair on the floor searching blindly through the items that had fallen out of her bag.

"What's the matter? Lookin' for something" the group jeered along with the boy who spoke, his short hair was like black feathers over his pale skin and his eyes were an odd shade of hazel that was almost tinged red in the light, the boy reminded Ahiru of a taller, darker version of the 'Price' from before.

"Kora!" The bullies stopped laughing and turned to the tiny first year when she yelled, "Leave her alone!"

The leader sneered at her for a moment, he chuckled before gesturing to the group that they were done, flinging the glasses over his shoulder as he left. Glaring at them for a moment longer the duck-girl rushed over to the girl on the floor who continued to search for her glasses. Picking them up gently Ahiru tapped her on the shoulder making her jump, her dark blue eyes widened when the large specks were placed over her eyes again, blinking when she finally saw the red-head who had found them. Concern sparkled in the young girls eyes as she looked over the other, "Are you ok?"

The girl adjusted her glasses as she nodded, stuffing her belongings back into her bag before staring at the strange cow-lick on the top of the others head.

Ahiru smiled widely, standing as she held out her hand, "I'm Arima, Ahiru. What's your name?"

"Ya-yagami, M-Malen" she stuttered, lifting herself off the ground and looking away from the offered hand.

Ahiru shook off her confusion and dropped her hand, never losing her smile, "Nice to meet you, Yagami-chan!"

Marron glanced her way for a moment before nodding and dashing off in the opposite direction. Blinking the first-year watched her leave, confusion and sadness seeping in ~_Ah...I thought I'd made a friend...~_

With a slump in her shoulders and a sigh, Ahiru made her way home not noticing the pair of dark eyes watching her curiously...

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><p><strong>That's all for now- sorry for unanswered Q's (please don't hurt me!)<strong>

**I hope to be quicker with the next chapter! Thankyou to all who reviewed and/or faved- I would name you all but I'm in a rush-I hope to write quicker for you all to enjoy!**

**Please R+Enjoy+R ^v^**


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